1. Field of the Invention
A mounting or attachment system for securing key striking solenoid assemblies to a keyboard musical instrument is presented. More particularly, the present invention relates to a solenoid mounting system having an adjustable mounting means for attaching to the keyboard instrument a plurality of improved solenoid key striking assemblies. The mounting system has a generally flattened, rectangular mounting rail having two opposing longitudinal, wedge-like edges. Each solenoid assembly has means for adjustably pinching or clamping onto one of the wedge-like edges of the mounting rail. Further, means are provided for maneuverably anchoring the mounting rail to a portion of the keyboard instrument.
2. Description of the Background Art
Existing systems with attachment means for securing solenoid assemblies to a keyboard instrument have included elements that are often cumbersome to mount or adjust, too large for use in the narrow spaces near many keyboards, or, when small enough to fit within a cramped keyboard space, deliver a weak striking force to the associated keys.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,796 describes a solenoid mounting assembly for musical keyboards. The disclosed assembly has parallel locking slots that run the length of the rail's longitudinal borders. To secure the solenoids, a protruding rib with opposing grooves cooperates with the locking slots. Each of the locking slots has means for threadably receiving a threaded fastener member. This slot element of the invention requires that the locking slot be deep enough to accept securely the threaded fastener. Therefore, as the drawings clearly indicate, each locking slot is "X" shaped so that a fastener can protrude through the threadable locking means. By necessity, this design requires that the thickness of the rail be of appropriate dimensions to accommodate the protruding fastener. As indicated above, the available leeway for positioning solenoids is often severely restricted near a keyboard. The minimum rail thickness required by this design inherently limits the structural locations in which the device will fit.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,491 is a solenoid mounting rail for a musical keyboard instrument that is very similar to the rail detailed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,796. The exhibited invention has two critical differences from that described in the above U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,796 solenoid mounting rail. First, alignment rib on the longitudinal edges of the planar surfaces of the rail have been added. These alignment ribs project outward from the surface of the rail and accept solenoid edges for mounting alignment. Second, the grooved rib for cooperatively holding the solenoids has been replaced by a locking slot like those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,796. As with the U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,796 mounting rail, this version must have an appropriate rail thickness to accommodate the locking nuts and the associated fastener, thereby limiting its use in narrow spaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,513,652 presents, for illustrative purposes, one possible type of solenoid actuator for keyboard instruments. This disclosure stresses the desirability of producing components that are small in size in order to fit within the restricted available space near a keyboard.